MaxPreps Weekly Honor Roll, presented by the United States Marine Corps: Olivia Womble, Radford

Prior to her freshman year, Olivia Womble had never even considered playing volleyball.

But with her being 6-foot tall with an athletic frame, some friends suggested she give it a try. It took Womble a couple seasons to get acclimated on the court but this year she enjoyed a breakout performance.

The junior at Radford (Va.) showed glimpses of why she could be one of the top volleyball recruits on the East Coast for the Class of 2020.

"If someone would have told me I'd be the player I am today when I first started playing, I would literally just laugh," Womble said.

Volleyball has become an obsession for Womble. She's playing the sport nearly year-round — logging what she figures about 150 matches per year. Womble's high school season concluded earlier this month and the club season, in which she competes for VA Juniors Volleyball Club, gets underway in early December.

Meghan Johnson coached Womble in her first year with VA Juniors at the U15 level. This past season, Johnson got a chance to coach Womble at Robinson. The on-court progress Johnson has witnessed from Womble in just two years has been astronomical.

"When she was on my team first, she didn't have a ton of volleyball knowledge, she had this eagerness to learn and be a student of the game," Johnson said. "She's spent a lot of time outside of practice just watching film and trying to get better. She's a really great athlete. She jumps really, really well. Right now, she's touching at 10 (feet) or 10-1. Just this year, it was really cool to see her come into her own personally. The chemistry that she brought to my team — she brought a ton of passion and a lot of fire to my team, which was very beneficial for us this year."
Having a successful high school season on the court really fueled Womble's fire for the sport. She finished with 226 kills and a hitting percentage of .314 hitting percentage. Add in 15 total blocks and 34 block assists, Womble had a solid year.

"I would set goals for myself, how many kills I wanted that game, all the blocks I wanted and all the other stuff," Womble said. "It really helped me keep a level head about each game and knowing that I was going to play this game like it was the last game I was ever going to play. But also keeping in mind that it wasn't the end of the world if we lost."

Early in her junior season, Womble showed she could be a valuable go-to player for big points for her team. She worked extremely hard in the offseason on ball placement and where to utilize certain shots, such as tips, instead of trying to beat a team with a hard kill every time.

"Every volleyball player loves to crush the ball," Johnson said. "But smart and really great hitters understand which ball to take a swing on and just how to score. This year, she really did work a lot on just going high hand — knowing when to tip and tipping with a purpose, not just because you have to and understanding when to take that hard cross. Just mixing up her shots is definitely something she worked hard on."

Womble, who plays all three upfront positions — middle, right side and outside — is a three-rotation player at this point in her career. But with hard work, she's determined to play a full rotation and never leave the court.

However, it has been advantageous for Womble to take a break in action during matches to re-energize and to scout her opponents.

"It always helps with my mental game because if I'm having a bad three rotation the first time then when I'm on the bench I always pay attention to the other side's defense, their block or how they're pushing the ball out or where they're setting so as soon as I step back on the court I'm mentally engaged and ready to go," Womble said.

Womble — who also competes on Robinson's track and field team as a middle-distance runner and in field events — is starting to garner interest in volleyball from Division I colleges. Radford University has already extended a scholarship offer and she's been in talks with George Washington University — where her mom is a professor.

For Womble to attract larger Division I schools — her dream school is the University of Georgia — coach Johnson knows her player has to improve on a couple areas of her game.

"I think what I'd like to see from her is her serve receive needs to improve and her defense because I think she could be a really great six-rotation outside," Johnson said. "She's definitely a D-I kid. And she has a really, really great club coach this year who just knows a lot of great coaches, a lot of Division I coaches. I think this year's going to be a very pivotal year for her in the recruiting process."

Being a solid academically will also help Womble in deciding which college she'll attend. She holds a 3.5 grade point average and is currently enrolled in two honors courses this semester.

Since she just transferred schools in the fall, Womble hasn't had a chance to join many clubs. But she's a student representative for the school's Ambassador Program.

When Womble attended Fairfax the first two years of high school, she started up the Athletic Training Intern Program. It allows students who are possibly interested in studying sports medicine in college a chance to job shadow athletic trainers. Womble would like to pursue a degree in some area of the sports medicine field such as a physical therapist or chiropractor. It's a program that has continued at Fairfax even though Womble no longer attends the school.

Womble also worked on a project with her mom, who used to be a professor at Duke. The funded program was focused on how to feed older adults who suffer from dementia. Womble helped make and edit videos.

"Knowing that I was a part of something that was going to help take care of the older generation really did impact me," Womble said.

Womble has always been a kid who enjoys helping others and making everyone feel welcome.